IPhone 12 and iPhone 12 Pro review roundup: fresh design and future-proofing
The first reviews of Apple’s new 5G-enabled smartphones, the iPhone 12 and iPhone 12 Pro, are in from publications with early access to two of the four new models.
The £999 iPhone 12 Pro has an extra telephoto camera and Lidarbased depth sensor not present on the cheaper £799 iPhone 12, which just has a regular and an ultrawide camera on the back. Neither the smaller and cheaper iPhone 12 Mini nor the largest and most expensive iPhone 12 Pro Max are yet available.
While the redesign with flatter sides and smaller bodies around the same or larger screens has proven popular, some of the improvements to the hardware, including 5G, have not yet paid off. The differences between the iPhone 12 and 12 Pro models are also smaller than ever, while those keen on photography might be advised to wait to see what the iPhone 12 Pro Max with its improved camera system will deliver in November.
The Guardian will have its own reviews of the new iPhones in the next week or so, but in the meantime here’s what those given early access by Apple had to say.
iPhone 12
Costing from £799, the iPhone 12 has a 6.1in OLED screen, two cameras on the back, 64GB of storage and the same A14 Bionic processor as the rest of the iPhone 12 and 12 Pro line.
Dieter Bohnfrom the Verge notes that the iPhone 12 is noticeably smaller than its predecessor despite having the same size screen:
The faster processor and smaller design haven’t dented battery life, as Rhiannon Williamsfrom the i notes:
Stuart Milesfrom Pocket Lint found the night mode and HDR capabilities of the camera to be much improved:
TechRadar’s Gareth Beavis concludes that the iPhone 12 is more future-proofed with lots of potential but doesn’t yet feel like a massive change over the iPhone 11 and is more expensive:
Lauren Goodefor Wired found many of the iPhone 12’s features similar to the iPhone 11, including the camera and battery, and, with 5G not a widely developed system yet, she warns:
Engadget’sChris Velazco was impressed by both the new iPhones but noted that the delta between them has shrunk:
iPhone 12 Pro
Costing from £999, the iPhone 12 Pro has a 6.1in OLED screen, three cameras on the back plus a Lidar sensor, 128GB of storage (double the iPhone 12) and has the same A14 Bionic processor as the cheaper iPhone 12.
Patrick Holland, writing for Cnet, preferred the iPhone 12 Pro because of its feel:
Meanwhile, Joanna Sternwriting for the Wall Street Journal found the inverse, and that the MagSafe accessory attachment system is good in theory but you need to be a bit careful in practice:
The Verge’sNilay Patel found the camera system is only slightly better than its predecessor for still photography:
Apple’s focus on video appears to be paying off, however, as Rhiannon Williams from the i found the both the quality and stabilisation to be topnotch: